New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1887-08-07
NOVELS AND SHORT STORIES.

| A HUMBLE ROMANCE, and other storie. BY MARY
T. WILKINS. 16mo. PIP. 436 Harper Bro
TALES BEFORE SUPPER From TnsorH,LE G Mvndipt
verelst Introduction by Edgar Status" iomo' PIP
224. Brentanos.
MEYER. Translated by 8. II. Adams. 12mo, PIP. 1862
Boston: Cupples & Hurd
| MISS GAsCOIGNH1A Novel BY Mrs j. H. RIDDELL-
16no, pp 1877. d. Appleton Co.
The vo;ume OF short stories by Mary +. wilkins
| is a gallery of striking studies In the humbest
| quarters Of American country life No one has
| dealt with this kind of life better than Miss
wilkins. Nowhere there to be found such
faithful, delicatey drawn, sympathetic. tendeily
humorous pictures OF The poor old women, old
maids, cripDes blind. poverty-stricken bangers-on
of hundred New-England villages, who cling with
astonishing persistence to their wretched independ-
ence who exc out the most pnched and scanty
subsistence by making rag carpets. patchwork
quilts. mats. doing sewing. and so forth; or who
manage to cultivate quarter acre OF SO bebind
their tuu ble-down cottages. and live chiefly upon
vegetables and greenmeats. All these queer.
quaint. pathetic old people pass across MISS
Wilkins's pages. Brought all together as in this
volume, there may seem to be somewhat TOO many
of them. or the stories may appear cast rather Zoo
II uch in the same moald, but there is really no
sameness no monotoav The poor old creatures
are properly differentiated, and each has her own
character aud idiosyncracies. The writer has deep
insight She knows how these village folBs i've
within themselves The sluggishness OF their intel
lec.ual processes The almost bovine placiditv ana
patience they tring to bear on life In Inc Two
Old Lovers" and In Butterfly Time" these traits
are well shown. The stories are not less sad than
clever but they are moi to be found fault with on
this account, for those who find in life nothing
but comedy constitute small mir OrIty, and where
there are so many unfulfled hopes, so MANY small
disapuointnents the dominant tone must naturally
be one of melancholy.
Mr. Myndart Verelst has we'll translated. and Mr..
Edgar S9ltus entertainlngly introduced. Gautlers
"Avatar" and Merimees 1" VEINS of Ille." 1t Is
rather curious that Mr.. Saltus does not allnde to
the fact that Meriuees story is merely variant o1
very ancient legend whether originating in Scandi
navia or India it may very well be left to the folk
lore experts to determine. If they can. that Is to
say for up to the present time they have merely
Joined battle on this and number of other issues
and to tbs outside world appear to be equally
near or equally far away from the truth.
Merimee's Venus of Ille,' however, is one of the
Tannhauser legends, ana it has been traced back
at least as far as the Zine of the Roman Empire.
Nor can we admit that Mcrlmee has improved 1t IN
his version Indeed. he has vulgari2ed and
materiazed it by the introduction of the coarse
and clumsy machinery Of Don Juan. The idea OF
the bronze statue walH ing mp the stairs inevitably
recalls that of the Commandments accepting the
proHigate Dons supper invitation. AS an llustra-
ton of Mermee's power and of his STYLE the selcc-
ton is rather unfortunate, is 1t fit to be paired
with Gauter's" Avatar." in which there is genuine
Imagination and creative force, and which really is
a gem in its kind.
"The Monks Welding" is translated from the
German 1t is said that Meyers novel made sem
saton when first pu blished. but this may perhaps
be taken with several grams Of allowance. The
story is supposed to he told by Dante in his exile
and it is tale of slaughter and vengeance ana
tyranny and the folly and perver'ity OF women, In
the style thought by writers to he the correct
thing for me lieval romances. but which seems to
have little or nothing to do with human action OF
any kind. No real picture of Dante is attempted.
He is misty and vague, and the story which he
improvises does little credit to his invention Tho
central idea, that of monk taken from the coster
to support the fortunes OF ancient housc all the
members of which save him have been suddenly
cut of by an accident certainly offered fresh field
but il has not been awaited of to any satisf actory
extent.
Miss Gascoigne" is a fairly interesting novel,
the heroine being wealthy girl who is left solitary
through the death of her parents and sisters who
under msapprehen sion agrees to accept the charge
of old friends young son, aud finds too late that
the supposed boy Is young man with whom she
proceeds to fall in love. Happily for herself she
perceives the impossibility of the situation at the
very last moment, that is, when she has engaged
herself to her ward and so she goes away to travel
very mucn as would in similar c'rcum-
stances. TO make cheerful ending she is re-
wardea at last BIZ the love of good man whom she
ought to have married long before, bnt who has
been patient There ia nothing remarkable about
the story, but it has the merit of brevity
Yrax,